


My reputation precedes me, in rumors I'm knee deep

by StrawberryLane



Series: Seven minutes in heaven [15]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Age Difference, Awkwardness, Established Relationship, Family Dinners, Gossip Magazines, M/M, May Finds Out, Meet the Family, Press and Tabloids, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-14
Updated: 2018-10-14
Packaged: 2019-08-02 01:17:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16295531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StrawberryLane/pseuds/StrawberryLane
Summary: As a general rule, Aunt May is not a big reader of gossip magazines. Sometimes though, like when she’s waiting for her turn at the dentist’s office, she occasionally thumbs through the odd copy of US Weekly or OK!And thumbing through a several months old copy of US Weekly is exactly how she finds out about her nephew’s relationship with one centenarian super-soldier.





	My reputation precedes me, in rumors I'm knee deep

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Taylor Swift's End Game. 
> 
> Also, two in one day!

As a general rule, Aunt May is not a big reader of gossip magazines. Sometimes though, like when she’s waiting for her turn at the dentist’s office, she occasionally thumbs through the odd copy of US Weekly or OK!, not really caring that they may be several months old. It’s not like she really cares about the gossip anyway.

 

And thumbing through a several months old copy of US Weekly is exactly how she finds out about her nephew’s relationship with one centenarian super-soldier.

 

*

 

“Care to explain this to me?” Aunt May asks the minute Peter comes through the door, already excitedly telling her about the latest Lego thing he and Ned built during lunch at school.

 

Peter pauses, taking in the look on her face. It’s a mixture of confusion and anger and could, possibly, rival Captain America’s own stare of disappointment.

 

_Shit_.

 

Cautiously, Peter puts his backpack down by doorway, walking over to the kitchen table. There, in the middle of it, is a copy of US Weekly, splayed open to show a large picture of himself with his boyfriend. _Romance in the Romanian Rubble?_ the headline reads and oh, no. Oh no.

 

This is not good. Not good at all.

 

Bucky has his hands on Peter’s ass for the whole world to see and there’s no way he can explain this away to May.

 

“Where did you get that?” he settles on, motioning towards the magazine and laughing a little. “That’s so weird, I don’t know why they’d do that-”

 

“Peter Benjamin Parker.”

 

The way she says his name shuts him right up. She doesn’t even sound angry, just done. She sounds so tired, so done Peter can feel it in his bones.

 

“How long has this been going on for?”

 

“Uh, for awhile?”

 

“How long? Please tell me you were legal?” She looks so worried, all Peter wants is to do is hug her, but he doesn’t think that would be appreciated right now, so he simply shakes his head.

 

“No,” he mumbles, looking everywhere but her face, “I can’t tell you that.”

 

*

**To BB:** _Hey, I’m grounded. In so much shit. Call me please._

 

 

“Hey babe,” says Bucky’s tinny, tired voice through the phone the second Peter picks up. “What’s up?”

 

“Well, uh, we’ve been found out,” Peter tells him, reclining against the backboard on his bed. “And I’m not really supposed to have my phone but May said I could call you because you need to get your ass here pronto for a meet the parent dinner or she’s calling the cops to get you arrested for statutory rape.”

 

There’s a dumbfounded silence on the other end of the phone.

 

“I tried telling her you’re at training camp with the avengers in Florida and won’t be back for another week but she wouldn’t listen.”

 

“Well. Um, shit. Give me, like, an hour. I’ll be there. Any gifts in particular that might help me out?”

 

*

When Bucky shows up, an hour later on the dot, he’s dressed in nice, business casual clothing, he’s clean shaven and he brings a huge bouquet of purple hyacinths for May.

 

He’s also insanely nervous.

 

“Peter tells me you were in Florida not even an hour ago,” Aunt May informs Bucky as she accepts the bouquet.

 

“I – uh, yeah. Tony was kind enough to give me a ride.”

 

“Tony Stark?”

 

“Yes, ma’am.”

 

“Don’t much like that man,” Aunt May tells them. “He always seems like he’s going to cause trouble of some kind.”

 

*

 

Aunt May announces that they’ll be having butter chicken with naan bread and rice for dinner and promptly puts both of them to work.

 

It’s only when Bucky needs to roll up his sleeves to avoid soaking them in minced garlic that Peter realizes his boyfriend is wearing a glove on his left hand.

 

“Hey,” he whispers, moving closer as May temporarily leaves the room. “What’s up with that? How’s training going?”

 

“Tony thought it might help your aunt not see the soldier if I hid the arm. Guess it’s too late now,” Bucky says, giving a small, sad chuckle and nodding down towards where the vibranium that is his left arm is clearly visible because he rolled up his sleeves. “And training’s fine. Steve still doesn’t completely understand his own strength, but other than that it’s been fine.”

 

“She won’t care about your arm, Buck. That’s not the issue here and we both know it.”

 

Bucky bows his head just as May comes back into the room. “Yeah,” he sighs. “I know.”

 

*

 

“Bucky volunteers at an abortion clinic. Like, as an escort,” Peter blurts out just to say something, anything that will start a conversation, anything that will take away this awful, awkward silence. There’s been several attempts at conversation, all failing. Peter’s just waiting for the third degree to start.

 

“Is that so?” asks May, turning her attention to Bucky. It’s not too noticeable, but there’s a small glimmer of interest in her eyes. And approval, which is what Peter is after. He desperately wants May to like Bucky.

 

Bucky nods, clearing his throat. “Yeah, uh. Once I recovered a little from Hydra, I thought I might as well use my reputation and, well, body language, to help out people who need it. Helping out at an abortion clinic seemed like a good choice.”

 

May nods at that. “You volunteer often?”

 

“Whenever I can. I try to do it at least twice a week. My schedule can be a little unpredictable,” Bucky tells her, sharing a small smile with Peter at the last comment.

 

“But you found the time to date my underage nephew didn’t you?” asks May mildly, biting into a piece if chicken delicately, sounding like she’s talking about the weather. She’s been doing everything mildly since Bucky arrived, Peter thinks.

 

At her comment, Bucky’s smile falls and Peter feels his cheeks grow warm. “May,” he begins, “It’s not like that-”

 

“I believe I asked Mr Barnes a question, Pete.”

 

Bucky, once again, clears his throat. He seems to be doing that a lot tonight, Peter thinks. “I love him,” Bucky explains to May. “I know what I’ve done is wrong and believe me, I don’t give a rat’s ass about what happens to me from here on, but you have to believe me when I say I’m head over heels for your nephew. I adore being his boyfriend. And I don’t regret one single bit of it.”

 

May’s mouth is in a thin line of disapproval. “I don’t approve of this,” she tells them both. “Did – did anything happen while Peter was below the age of consent?”

 

It looks like it pains her to ask and Peter can’t fault her for that. He’d be squicked out too. At the same time, both he and Bucky desperately shake their heads. “No!” Peter shouts, conveniently forgetting about those, few, small kisses that did actually happen.

 

“Absolutely not,” says Bucky, looking directly at May. “Nothing.”

 

Peter’s not sure she actually believes them.

 

*

“So what happens now?” asks Bucky later, once dinner is finally, finally over, and he’s gone his merry way. Without a goodbye kiss, because May was standing right there and it was awkward as hell.

 

“Well,” Peter murmurs quietly into the phone, “You can visit. I’m grounded until I’m thirty, but you can visit if we keep the door wide open and there’s no touching below the waist at any time. And no kissing. Like, at all.”

 

Peter pouts as Bucky chuckles. “I can actually live with that,” his boyfriend informs him. “As long as I get to see you and spend time with you, I can wait to do all those things..”

 

“Thanks for the phone by the way,” Peter tells him. Bucky had, when May went to the bathroom, sneakily handed him a brand new phone.

 

“Thank Stark. He’s the one who gave it to me when I mentioned you might be without yours for a while.”

 

“Tell him thanks for me. You going back to Florida?”

 

“Yeah. Kinda left in the middle of sparring with Nat.”

 

“Sorry.”

 

“Hey, that’s not your fault. If anything, it’s fucking US Weekly’s fault. And mine, for doing what I did in front of them. None of this is your fault.”

 

“Still,” Peter mutters and Bucky replies with a tinny “hey!”. For a couple of minutes, there’s no conversation, only the sound of Bucky’s breathing as he walks down the street and the noise of the city that filters through the phone.

 

“Found him,” Bucky suddenly informs Peter and Peter hears the sound of Tony Stark shouting “Tin Man!” and Bucky responding. After a minute, Bucky is back on the line. “Gotta go, Pete. Remember I love you and adore you and that your aunt really just wants what’s best for you. And I’ll see you when I get back, if May allows it. I’ll bring other flowers next time, I don’t think she got the message.”

 

Peter laughs quietly. “I love you too. And please come visit. Text me when you guys get to Florida.”

 

“Will do. Bye!” Bucky promises and Peter can hear him smiling into the phone.

 

“Bye!” Peter repeats, unable to keep the fondness he feels out of his voice.

 

Well, he thinks, stuffing the phone beneath his pillow, that didn’t turn out to be quite the disaster Peter had imagined it to be, even if it didn’t go as gloriously as he’d wanted.

 

Now all he’s got do is get out of being grounded.

 

*

 

**From BB:** _Landed in Florida. The gang says hi. Love you <3 _

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you liked it!


End file.
